Stephen King used quotes to portray his thoughts about how society would be if time travel existed. Using the voice of his main character, King also projected emotions of love, regret, and reflection.

Life and Chaos

For a moment everything was clear, and when that happens you see that the world is barely there at all. Don’t we all secretly know this? It is a perfectly balanced mechanism of shouts and echoes pretending to be wheels and cogs, a dream clock chiming beneath a mystery-glass we call life. Behind it? Below it and around it? Chaos, storms. Men with hammers, men with knives, men with guns. Women who twist what they cannot dominate and belittle what they cannot understand. A universe of horror and loss surrounding a single lighted stage where mortals dance in defiance of the dark.

Here, Stephen King talks about the chaotic and distortive nature of life. Traveling back in time, Jake realized that life is not unfair. He discovered that the chaotic nature of life was a perfectly balanced system that made sense when viewed on a grand scale. Jake realized that the bad was a crucial part of life because it defines good. His deductions were right as he made a positive change to the past completely shattered the present.

Life turns on a dime.

Life is a collection of events that mutually affect each other, and a single change could cause a heavy impact; the quote above explains that concept. Stephen King explained that life could instantly change for the worse even though one tries to do otherwise.

We did not ask for this room or this music. We were invited in. Therefore, because the dark surrounds us, let us turn our faces to the light. Let us endure hardship to be grateful for plenty. We have been given pain to be astounded by joy. We have been given life to deny death. We did not ask for this room or this music. But because we are here, let us dance.

The quote above talks about how people try to survive the pain and suffering life brings. Stephen King talks through Jake as he explains how the will to fight persists even in the darkness. Jake experienced pain as he watched the woman he loved die, but he lived past that pain and overcame the urge to change the past again.

Love

But I believe in love, you know; love is a uniquely portable magic. I don’t think it’s in the stars, but I do believe that blood calls to blood and mind calls to mind and heart to heart.

Love knows no time and no boundaries. Jake found love in the past, falling in love with Sadie, and his love for her made him realize that no matter what time he came from, there was still love and that love was a universal language. Jake referred to love as uniquely portable magic, meaning it happened unexpectedly, and you never knew when you would be overwhelmed by it.

Sometimes a man and a woman reach a crossroads and linger there, reluctant to take either way, knowing the wrong choice will mean the end… and knowing there’s so much worth saving.

Love is about sacrifice and knowing how and when to make a decision. Jake found himself in an on-and-off relationship with Sadie because he knew a truth she never did. He found himself in a strained situation, where a single choice could make him lose the love of his life. The thought of that scared him and, he decided to tell her the truth.

On the subject of love at first sight, I’m with the Beatles: I believe that it happens all the time.

Love can be spontaneous, and Stephen King explains the concept in ‘11/22/63‘ with Jake and Sadie. Jake never knew he was ever going to fall for a woman in the past, but as with love, it knows no time.

Identity

If you’ve ever been homesick, or felt exiled from all the things and people that once defined you, you’ll know how important welcoming words and friendly smiles can be.

What happens when you feel out of place like you do not belong? The quote above perfectly simulates such a scenario. Jake was a person who was from another time where life was different, and he’s going back to the past made him lonelier than ever. Jake felt out of time, but he realized that the only thing that mattered was the relationships he made. Friends make you smile and feel loved, and Jake found that love with the friends he eventually made.

Choice

Sometimes the things presented to us as choices aren’t choices at all.

We all love to feel that we have a say, a choice in everything we do but in this quote, Jake explains that may not always be the case. Jake thought he had to change the past, but after changing it, he realized he made the biggest mistake of his life. Jake realized his change brought only pain, suffering, and destruction. Eventually, he had no other option than to revert the past to normal.

The Butterfly Effect

We never know which lives we influence, or when, or why. Not until the future eats the present, anyway. We know when it’s too late.

The quote above elaborates the effect of the choices we make. The butterfly effect is an effect that happens when a small change creates a massive impact. Jake never knew that changing the past even in the slightest way vastly affects the future, but after him killing Frank Dunning also killed Harry, he realized that the changes he made had a massive impact on the lives of others around that change. Jake changing the past made him realize that though people may have terrible experiences in their lives, those experiences may be what shapes them for the better.

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